Windsor Castle

Windsor Castle has been a royal home for more than 900 years and is the oldest and largest occupied castle in the world. Its State Apartments are hung with paintings by Rubens and Van Dyck, and Queen Mary's Dolls' House, a palace in miniature, delights children.

St George's Chapel, where many royal weddings and funerals have taken place, is a masterpiece of Gothic architecture. On scheduled days the guard changes here too, marching up through the town.

Windsor is about an hour from central London, so it pairs well with Stonehenge or Oxford on the same day. We check opening days before you go, as the castle sometimes closes for royal events. Afterwards, walk down to the Thames and across the bridge to Eton, home of the famous school.